As the festive season gets into full swing, what better way to embrace the holiday spirit than by engaging in delightful Christmas crafts with your children?

Crafting is not just a fun way to spend quality time with your little ones; it's also a crucial component of a child's development and comes with a myriad of benefits.

At Grow Early Education, we recognise its role in nurturing various skills in children. So throughout the year, arts and crafts is a significant component of our educational programs at our long day care centres.

Why are arts and crafts beneficial for children? Engaging in craft activities fosters communication, attentiveness, imagination, and crucial developmental skills!

Here's a short outline of the skills children can grow through doing arts and crafts:

Fine Motor Skills:

• Enhancing hand-eye coordination
• Developing manual dexterity

Identification of Shapes, Colours, and Texture:

• Exploring materials to comprehend colours, shapes, and textures
• Learning about the workings of things and how they interconnect

Creativity:

• Fostering a playful and experimental spirit in an enjoyable and laid-back setting

In this blog, we've curated our top five favourite and most popular Christmas craft ideas for you to enjoy at home with your children:

1. Paper Plate Baubles

This versatile craft allows you to use a variety of materials to decorate and hang paper plates, creating your own unique Christmas baubles. Whether it's stickers, paint, or coloured felt, choose materials that suit your child's age and development.

Here are some finished creations to give you and your little one some visual inspiration:

2. Popsicle Stick Ornaments

Transform ordinary popsicle sticks into festive ornaments, ranging from stars to Christmas trees and snowflakes. The possibilities for shapes and decorating ideas are infinite.

See below for different shape constructions and decorating ideas:

3. Hand Print Christmas Tree

Combining sensory play with craft, the handprint Christmas tree design is simple yet effective. After creating the tree on paper, canvas, or even a Christmas card, once it is dry it is then time to decorate your tree.

Here are some different designs you can make using your hand print:

4. Christmas Cookie Decorating

Perfect for baking enthusiasts, you can also involve your children in the baking part to extend their culinary skills. Use Christmas-themed cookie cutters or a cherished family recipe to start a lovely Christmas family tradition.

See below for some cookie decorating ideas and even how to create a Christmas cookie decorating board:

5. Pine Cone Ornaments

Incorporate natural materials into your arts and crafts by turning pine cones into mini-Christmas trees or creating unique figures like reindeers, angels, or owls. The natural texture of pine cones adds a unique element for children to discover and explore.

Here’s some amazing pine cone creations for you to see:

As Christmas Day fast approaches, our aim is to populate this month with festive experiences and activities for the children to enjoy in our childcare centres.

Follow us on Facebook for regular updates on our Christmas arts and craft activities, and get ready to be inspired by the wonderful Christmas creations from our Grow Early Education centres.